


mission codename: [redacted]

by raggirare



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Pre-Canon, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-14
Updated: 2017-02-14
Packaged: 2018-09-23 12:51:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,460
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9658181
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/raggirare/pseuds/raggirare
Summary: “White Day?” she asked, incredulous and mocking all at once. “What, did you get chocolates from some poor girl today?”------McGenji V-Day exchange gift for salmonriot





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [mjolnirs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/mjolnirs/gifts).



> I love the idea of Genji giving gifts honestly, so I had to pounce on this idea. I really hope you like this!

“Never took y’for such a swee’ tooth.”

Grey eyes barely flickered from the screen in front of him, but Jesse felt no offence. One didn’t need to spend an eternity with the younger Shimada to know that his arcade games were the priority for his attention when mid-game. Secondary today, Jesse noticed, was chocolate. Piles of chocolate.

There were boxes that betrayed a store-bought nature, and carefully decorated wrappings giving away homemade treats. There was a bag on the floor at Genji’s feet, stacked full of even more of chocolates, and a second bag on his other side for all the empty boxes and wrappers and unread cards of heartfelt messages (or, at least, Jesse assumed that’s what they were, since his Japanese reading comprehension wasn’t entirely up to scratch).

“I only eat them on this day,” Genji explained. His eyes remained focused on the screen, one hand moving expertly over the buttons in front of him while the other took an opportunity to lift a particularly ugly-looking handmade chocolate to his mouth. “I often do not eat all of it. Cannot eat all of it.” His face twisted in a sneer, almost disgusted, and Jesse couldn’t quite figure out if it was at the game or at the chocolate in his mouth. “It does not help that some insist on making them so incredibly sweet.”

The chocolate, then. 

Curious, Jesse reached forward and picked up one of the chocolates. They all seemed to be badly misshapen, made in a mold and yet somehow still complete and utter failures. Genji didn’t seem to care that he had stolen it, so he popped in his mouth experimentally. Sweet, but on par with the milk chocolate he had back home. Not as sweet as he had suspected from Genji’s reaction (but in the ten months he had known the heir this closely, he had long suspected that sweet things weren’t exactly Genji’s favourite thing in the world).

“Wha’s with all the chocolate, anyhow?” Jesse asked, licking a sliver of chocolate crumb from his finger. “Ain’ your birthday or nothin’, is it? I’d feel bad if I’d forgotten somethin’ like that.”

Genji turned, finally give Jesse attention over his game (a ‘Game Over’ logo flicked red and gold, a continue option counting down beneath it). “It is Valentine’s Day,” he said, almost dumbfounded, far more shocked than Jesse would have expected. “Do you not have it in America?”

Jesse blinked, and stared right back. “‘Course we have i’ in America, bu’ Valentine’s ain’ for everyone to give gifts to everyone,” he said, glancing at the pile of chocolates. “It’s for couples to do stuff together, or singles go out and celebrate being single. Sometimes a bunch of friends ge’ together for it ’n' do things together.”

“I see,” Genji commented, attention moving to pick the last chocolate out of the packet and then toss the packet in with the other empty wrappings. “In Japan, Valentine’s Day is for girls to make chocolates and give them to the boys that they like. Traditionally, that is. Some couples will celebrate it together. Women, or even younger girls, will make chocolate for all of their friends.” A pause as he focused on opening the next package, this one a store-bought dark type, and slipped more coins into the arcade machine. “You are staying for next semester, correct?”

“Yeah,” Jesse’s expression pulled into a wide smile. “My dean back home got in contact and they said I can do another year of exchange and still transfer credits.”

The game in front of them both roared to life and Genji’s hands moved back to their place on the controls. “Then I do not need to tell you about White Day yet.”

Jesse glanced at him. “What’s ‘White Day’?” he asked, lips tugging into a slight frown.

Genji smirked, a tiny quirk at the corners of his mouth. “You will see.”

———

“Oh, yeah, Nara,” Jesse glanced up from the textbook in front of him to the video call on the screen of his laptop, eyes catching the second lieutenant as she passed in the background. “What’s ‘White Day’?”

The second lieutenant let a sharp laugh escape as she neared the screen, leaning one hand on the desk while the other rested on the back of Gabriel’s chair. “White Day?” she asked, incredulous and mocking all at once. “What, did you get chocolates from some poor girl today?”

“Wha’? No! Genji did though. Tha’ guy go’ a ton’ve ‘em.”

“I’m not surprised,” Gabriel interjected, adjusting the screen of his datapad to accommodate Nara and allow her to fit into the camera’s frame easier. “He’s popular enough in his own neighbourhood without having to include the university student body as well. Let me guess, he doesn’t even stop to consider they could be poisoned at all?”

Jesse gave a shake of his head. “Seems like he jus’ eats ‘em withou’ really payin’ much attention, t’be hones’ w’ya.” He ran a hand through his hair, scratching at the back of his neck. “Also said he ain’ much’ve a chocolate eater aside from Valentines. Fills his quota f’r the year or somethin’.”

“We could very easily take advantage of this situation, Reyes,” Nara commented, her head tilting to one side, long hair falling from her shoulders to hang. “He does not think Jesse would know what White Day is, and it could serve as the perfect opportunity if he is truly as carefree about gifted food.”

“Y’still ain’ told me wha’ White Day even is.”

“It’s like Valentine’s Day but the other way around,” Gabriel explained, beating Nara to the point. “It’s in March for the guys who received chocolate to give gifts back to the girls they like. And then April has a singles day for the people who got nothing. Or something like that.” He leaned forward on his elbows on the desk. “You can’t cook at all, can you, _vaquero_?”

Jesse laughed. “Nothing y’all’d consider food or nothin’,” he said. “Though I could pro’ly learn somethin’ simple if I jus’ pick one thing. Somethin’ like ramen’d work, righ’?”

“The gesture alone may be enough to convince him to at least taste it, even if he knows it will not be like his favourite bar,” Nara mused. “It would be worth an attempt.”

Gabriel nodded his head. “It’s low risk,” he agreed. “Your apartment is secluded enough that we would be able to stealth him out of the area with little interference. Few would be worried he was even missing due to his habits. It would buy us a few days time before the Shimadas went looking for him.” He tapped his fingertips rhythmically on the surface of the desk, slowly nodding his head to himself. “You’d have to stay a little while longer by yourself, though, _niño_. Set up a god alibi and all. Keep up what you’ve been doing, keep going to classes and interacting with the rest of the students. Then we can call in with a family emergency to explain a sudden departure.”

“Sounds almos’ too easy,” Jesse gave a wave of his hand. “What’s plan b?”

“No plan b,” Gabriel shrugged. “He doesn’t eat the food, we stop there. He doesn’t pass out deep enough, we don’t pick him up. We just wait for another opportunity instead.”

“Quick, clean and simple, my kind of plan.” Nara gave the table a decisive tap as though she were the one in charge and straightened. “I’ll organise Phillips and Hsu for the transport and get Oliviera to run maintenance on the Stalker. Abeid can secure our safe house in Kanagawa for holding until pickup.”

“We have a month for blank runs and for you to learn how to make a bowl of ramen that’s edible,” Gabriel couldn’t stop the amusement that snuck into his tone. “Pull this off, _niño_ , and I might just get you to make me a bowl as well.”

Jesse laughed, genuine and hearty, before tipping an invisible brim (his hat was out of reach on his bed on the opposite side of the room).

“You go it, _jefe_.”

———

Jesse knew it was rude to stare, but he couldn’t help it. It was just one of those things that even with the training that Gabriel and the other higher rank Blackwatch officers (and even some from Overwatch) had tried to hammer into him that had never truly stuck. And, this time especially, he felt like he had a good excuse.

Getting Genji to agree to meet him for the night had been easy. Easier than he had expected really. Genji had been almost eager the moment he brought it up, as though he had been planning to ask the same thing. Jesse had planned simple. Get Genji over for a casual night of drinks and home-made ramen, make sure he got a proper dose of the drug cocktail Olviera had concocted, give Gabriel the go ahead and finally tie up his year-long mission in Japan posing as an international university student.

Genji, however, had different intentions. Jesse could tell that from his attire alone. He wasn’t super formal, lacking a suit, but a dark shirt with white paisley patterns embroidered into the material and pressed dress pants and his venomous green hair style in a classy style had Jesse feeling incredibly underdressed.

“I jus’ wanted t’ make y’dinner.” The words tumbled out of Jesse’s mouth before he could really stop and think, and Genji rewarded him with a blank expression and then a laugh.

“I did not know that you could cook,” he teased, inviting himself in and toeing off his shoes. “You should have said something. I already booked us a table.”

Jesse didn’t try to stop him, instead closing the door once Genji was properly inside. He was too caught in his head to properly pay attention. There was the mission at hand, of course, but there was also the shock of what was in front of him. He had met Genji personally more than ten months ago, and been spending time with him on a regular basis for more than eight, and in all that time, he had never once seen Genji in anything even remotely proper and fancy.

“Are you alright?” Genji’s voice broke through his train of thought, clearing his head entirely and earning the young heir a blank stare. “Jesse?”

“Huh?” Jesse blinked once before nodding and waving him off. “’m fine, ’m fine. Sorry. Jus’… surprised, I guess.” A laugh escaped, nervous. “Jus’ I figured out wha’ White Day was abou’ and wanted to surprise y’with home cooked ramen. AIn’ no good with chocolates, y’see.” When Jesse finally found it in him to make eye contact, what he saw surprised him: Genji staring back at him, shock now on his expression instead. “I mean, I missed ou’ on i’ for Valentine’s, righ’? And I figured I migh’ as well try t’ ge’ better a’ this ‘doing things the Japanese way’ thing. Plus, I guess it ain’ righ’ or fun for either of us t’ have t’ celebrate Singles day.”

Genji laughed, a single bark at first before it eased into something more natural and he shook his head. “Go and get changed, Jesse,” he said once he’d lifted his gaze again. “You can cook for me another day.”

Jesse didn’t linger, only nodded and headed into his bedroom to changed. Halfway through buttoning a dress shirt (his only dress shirt) it occurred to him that he would have to tell the others about the change in plan. A raincheck more than a complete cancellation. His phone, though, was not in his room, he realised after searching for it for a minute or two, so he finished dressing instead. Afterwards, he made a beeline for where he had left the device on the small dining table he owned and unlocked the screen.

“One more thing, before we leave,” Genji interrupted before Jesse could go much further and offered out a small parcel, neatly wrapped in silver wrapping paper and tied off with a red bow. “You may open it now.”

There was a moment of hesitation, partially because Jesse knew it was more polite (in Japan, at least) to wait until in private to open presents, but mostly because every move Genji was making seemed so unexpected and surprising. He placed his phone down and accepted the parcel and began to open it as gently as possible.

“Genji, you…”

“I am also incapable of making chocolates myself,” Genji admitted. “And I am entirely incapable of cooking, as well. However, I like to believe that I know you and things that you like.”

Jesse wouldn’t call him wrong.

Calloused fingers ran over the sheer surface of the silk he found at the top of the parcel. It was a neckerchief, he discovered from lifting it out, a deep wine red. Proper silk, as well, that ran smooth and comforting over his skin, and he couldn’t help but lift it to his neck to tie it into place. Underneath he discovered something else. Dark and thick and wrapped in a neat coil, he could tell from a single glance alone the true quality of the leather belt. 

“Didn’t realise I was so predictable,” Jesse only half-joked as he unfurled the belt and began the process of switching it in for the one he was wearing, spending an extra few minutes swapping his custom _BAMF_ belt buckle onto the new belt. “Genji, y’really didn’t have t’ get me nothin’.”

“No,” Genji agreed, a smile on his lips as he stepped forward to assist, hands taking over the belt, securing the buckle in place. “But it is something that I wanted to do. For White Day. And for you.”

Jesse lifted his eyes from the lingering hands to meet Genji’s and found in his expression something soft and sincere. He couldn’t place it nor explain it, but he didn’t question it. He simply returned the smile and placed his hands, gently, over top of Genji’s.

“Thank you,” he said, voice low. “Bu’ y’gotta promise you’ll let me cook for you, a’igh’?”

Genji’s lips tugged a little wider and he let go to pull his shoes back on. “I promise,” he said. “Now shall we?”

There was a brief pause before Jesse nodded and pocketed his phone. He pulled his shoes on and grabbed his wallet and keys before following Genji out of the apartment. He lingered for just a moment to pull his phone out again, and took a minute or two to tap out a message to Gabriel. Typed and sent, Jesse pocketed the phone again and fell into step beside Genji, their fingers slipping together.

_Mission abort. This ain’t gonna work,_ jefe.


End file.
